Materialism and Pantheism

 
We present in this issue the topic #59 from the Systematized Study of the Spiritist Doctrine, that is being presented weekly, according to the programme elaborated by the Brazilian Spiritist Federation (FEB), structured in 6 modules and 147 topics.

If the reader uses this program for a study group, we suggest that questions proposed be discussed freely before the reading of the text that follows. If you would like to study alone, we ask you to try to answer the questions at first and only then read the text that follows. The answer key can be found at the end of the lesson.

Questions

1. How can we define materialism?

2. Which were the main arguments, over the years, of materialism?

3. Which schools opposed materialism since the early times?

4. How can we define pantheism?

5. What does Spiritism say about materialism and pantheism?

Text

Materialism was born with Thales in ancient Greece

1. Materialism is the philosophical doctrine in which there is not essentially in the Universe such thing beyond the matter, as a cause, or as an effect. It implies in a system of worlds in which the basic foundation is the matter, uncreated and eternal, that means, no one created it, necessary and sufficient, with no interference of God. This conception is very old and it comes from the first Greek philosophers.

2. We have following, a sketch of materialistic ideas over the human history.

3. Materialism, as a doctrine, teaching or school, was born with Thales, in ancient Greek, around the century VI B.C. Materialism of Ionian philosophers enumerates some thesis that would become characteristics of later materialistic doctrines:

I – Philosophy should explain phenomena not according to religious myths, but by observation of reality itself.

II – The matter, uncreated and indestructible, is the substance in which all the other things come from.

III – The generation and corruption of things obey to a non-supernatural necessity, but a natural one, not to destiny, but to the physical laws.

IV – The matter is not static, but in constant movement, in permanent metamorphosis.

V – Sensible experience is the origin of knowledge.

VI – The soul is part of nature and obeys the same laws that govern its movement.

4. According to Thales, the primary substance was water; according to Anaximander, the undefined matter. Natural phenomena would consist of transformations of the same material principle, regardless of any divine interference.

5. Anaxagoras understood that Nature was composed of homeomerias, unities that contain the elements of all the things in infinite proportions. Democritus sustained that the origin of all things were the atoms. Everything that exists would be material, and the matter that composes the atom is identical, determining the different natural phenomena in function of quantitative diversity of atoms. Human soul, made also by these atoms, would be subject to decomposition and death. Nature – according to Democritus – explains for itself, and the events that are produced today have no original cause, because they preexist all the eternity in the infinite time, having, with no exception, all that was, is and will be.

Plato opposed since early to materialism

6. These were, in theory, the materialistic ideas that dominated until 13th century, having in counter position the Spiritualist schools – mainly Plato and post-Plato ones – and those who tried to reconcile materialism and theology, like Aristotle.

7. In the long period that composed Middle Age, materialism was suffering some alterations, always, though, rejecting the idea of a supreme Creator. According to Francis Bacon (1561-1626), the natural and physical sciences were “the true science”.

8. Hobbes (1588-1679) conceived in the same occasion a materialistic system perfectly coherent. Imaging the world as would Descartes, geometry as paradigm of the logical thinking and the mechanics of Galileo as the ideal natural science, he considered the world a set of material bodies, geometrically defined, by its form and extension. The man would be a body, just like the others; soul would not exist and the organisms would be gears of the universal mechanism.

9. John Locke (1632-1704) denied unborn ideas and stated that all human ideas have origin in experience. In the 18th century, Julien Offroy de la Mettrie (1709-1751) stated that pleasure and self-love are the only criteria of moral life and psychic phenomena would result of organic alterations in the brain and the nervous system. In the same time, Cloude Adrien Helvétius (1715-1771), who is considered the ideological forerunner of the French Revolution, defended the theory that all the ideas are sensations provoked by material objects and personality is a product of environment and education.

10. In the late 18th century, Paul Henri Dietrich (1723-1789) insisted on denying unborn ideas, the existence of soul and God, besides considering Christianity contrary to reason and Nature. According to Dietrich, religious behavior would be just political despotism.

Not only materialism denies the existence of Deity

11. Under Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Engels (1820-1895) comes up, in the 19th century, the so-called historical and dialectical materialism. According to Marxism, political and juridical organizations, habits and religion are strictly determined by economical conditions, by the state of industry and commerce, by production and sales.

12. As we can see, materialists only believe in the matter. However, they cannot help it but see the existent order in the Universe, an intelligent order they recognize, but, for them, it does not need an intelligent cause to precede, conceive and preside it.

13. But not only materialism denies God and the existence of Spirits. Pantheism also denies them. To those who preach this doctrine – among them stands out the vigorous mentality of Spinoza -, God, despite being the Supreme Being, is not a distinct Being, because they consider Him the result of the gathering of all the forces, all the intelligences of the Universe. According to Kardec, this doctrine is so inconsistent that, if true, would derogate the most important attributes of God.

14. The Pantheistic theory makes of God a material being, which, though endowed with a supreme intelligence, would only be on a larger scale what we are on a smaller one. But, as matter is incessantly undergoing transformation, God, if this theory were true, would have no stability. He would be subject to all the vicissitudes, and even to all the needs, of humanity He would lack one of the essential attributes of the Divinity, unchangeableness.

15. The intelligence of God is revealed in His works, as is that of a painter in his picture but the works of God are no more God Himself than the picture is the artist who conceived and painted it.

16. Materialism and Pantheism are confused, though, in the same denial of God as a distinct Being, that is, by the teaching of Superior Spirits, the Supreme Intelligence of the Universe and primary Cause of all things.  

Answer key

1. How can we define materialism? A.: Materialism is the philosophical doctrine in which there is not essentially in the Universe such thing beyond the matter, as a cause, or as an effect. It implies in a system of worlds in which the basic foundation is the matter, uncreated and eternal, that means, no one created it, necessary and sufficient, with no interference of God.

2. Which were the main arguments, over the years, of materialism? A.: Materialism, as a doctrine, teaching or school, was born with Thales, in ancient Greek, around the century VI B.C. Materialism of Ionian philosophers enumerates some thesis that would become characteristics of later materialistic doctrines:

·                    The matter, uncreated and indestructible, is the substance in which all the other things come from.

·                    The generation and corruption of things obey to a non-supernatural necessity, but a natural one, not to destiny, but to the physical laws.

·                    The matter is not static, but in constant movement, in permanent metamorphosis.

·                    The soul is part of nature and obeys the same laws that govern its movement.

3. Which schools opposed materialism since the early times? A.: the Spiritualist schools – mainly Plato and post-Plato ones – and those who tried to reconcile materialism and theology, like Aristotle.

4. How can we define pantheism? R.: The Pantheistic theory makes of God a material being, which, though endowed with a supreme intelligence, would only be on a larger scale what we are on a smaller one. But, as matter is incessantly undergoing transformation, God, if this theory were true, would have no stability. He would be subject to all the vicissitudes, and even to all the needs, of humanity He would lack one of the essential attributes of the Divinity, unchangeableness.

5. What does Spiritism say about materialism and pantheism? A.: Spiritism opposes both of them, because they are confused, though, in the same denial of God as a distinct Being, that is, by the teaching of Superior Spirits, the Supreme Intelligence of the Universe and primary Cause of all things.
 

Bibliography: 

The Spirits’ Book, by Allan Kardec, item 16.   

Encyclopedia Mirador Internacional. Item: Materialism, numbers 3-15.

God in Nature, by Camille Flammarion, 4th. Issue, FEB, pages. 402-407.